Myanmar's army will continue to play a key role in the move towards greater democracy, the president has said.
Speaking to the BBC in the capital Nay Pyi Taw, Thein Sein said the military had initiated reforms but he put no timeframe on reducing its dominant role in Burmese political life.
Thein Sein's four years in office have seen significant changes but the army's power remains untouched.
The military still occupies a quarter of the seats in parliament.
It also has a veto over constitutional change and the right to seize power outright at any time.
During our 45 minutes together I'd expected the president to put a little distance between himself and the army. He's an ex-general, of course, but he's now a politician and has a reputation as a reformer.
'National interest'
I thought I'd hear him say that he was trying to slowly coax the Burmese army to take a step back and submit to civilian control. What I got was a forceful justification of why Myanmar, formerly known as Burma, still needs the military involved in politics.
"It's not true that reforms have stalled because of the military," he said.
"The Tatmadaw [Burmese army] does not get involved with political parties and is only concerned with the national interest.